EVENTS - 05.2010

Dalai Lama an honorary citizen of Warsaw
The ceremony took place during a meeting of the City Council at the Royal Castle. The council members who granted the Dalai Lama this title justified their decision by writing that it was their duty to honor such a great man. These words were also repeated by the Mayor of Warsaw, Hanna Gronkiewicz-Waltz. She emphasized that honoring Dalai Lama with this title was particularly important in the year when Poland is celebrating the 20th anniversary of the fall of communism. Dalai Lama stated that he is a regular person, one of six billion inhabitants of the earth. He said that he felt honored to join the ranks of Varsovians.  Dalai Lama said that receiving honorary citizenship is affirmation of his work to promote human values and harmony between religions, above all. During the ceremony, Dalai Lama referred to Lech Wałęsa and Tadeusz Mazowiecki (the first Polish prime minister after the fall of communism) as friends.

Chopin Events 2010 – the Guide
To celebrate the bicentenary of the greatest Polish composer Frederic Chopin, the Polish Cultural Institute in London has created a guide to the numerous events taking place across the United Kingdom until June 2010. With comprehensive coverage of the many concerts, talks and CD releases, the guide also includes fascinating articles about Chopin, his life and his music and an overview of all his works. A limited number of free copies are available. To receive a free copy email your name and address to pci (at) polishculture. org. uk, or call 0203 206 2004.

Night of Museums
On the 16th of May, for the sixth time in a row, Warsaw invites to the Night of Museums. The inhabitants of the city and tourists, Polish and foreign alike, will be able to visit 141 cultural institutions. On this very night, you will be able to visit not only the most important museums and galleries in the city, but also the Nożyk Synagogue, the building of the Polish Parliament, the Archives of the Polish Academy of Sciences (PAN) and the St Trinity Lutheran Church of the Augsburg Confession (Małachowskiego Square), which is to participate in the event for the first time. The Night of Museums is to begin at 7 p.m. with a concert by MoCarta Group at Krakowskie Przedmieście St. Then, a parade of jugglers, stilters and dancers will proceed in the direction of Zamkowy Square. At 9 p.m. on the square in front of St Anna’s Church, there will be a performance of the Akt Theater. Later, every hour other performances of street theaters will be held in front of the largest cultural institutions. The novelty of this year’s Night of Museums in Warsaw lies in the opening hours of the institutions. Every forth museum or gallery will be open until 3 a.m., while the rest until 1 a. m. As usual, on the Night of Museums you can also visit national institutes: the Bulgarian Institute of Culture, the Czech Center, the French Institute, the Slovak Institute and the Hungarian Institute of Culture.
As it was in previous years, on this Night of Museums, the City of Warsaw will provide free transport between the museums. Thanks to cooperation with the Club of Public Transport Lovers (KMKM), nine museum bus lines and one historic streetcar line have been prepared, so old buses and trams are to run on the streets of Warsaw. The City Promotion Department will prepare 50,000 information guides and 50,000 leaflets on the Night of Museums. Last year, the event proved to be a great success. Some 200,000 people visited over 120 museums, galleries and other cultural institutions.
The Night of Museums will be also celebrated in many other Polish cities..

Warsaw awarded for its lighting
The capital of Poland has been awarded with the prestigious Jean-Paul L’Allier award for the illumination of the old town fortification walls. Warsaw received its award during the 10th World Congress of the Organization of World Heritage Cities, which took place in September, in Quito. The Jean-Paul L’Allier award recognizes the best design, with regard to revitalization or conservation of a site that is part of the UNESCO World Heritage list. A plaque with information about the award will be put in the Old Town. The Organization of World Heritage Cities (OWHC) was established in 1993, and consists of 242 cities whose treasures are part of the UNESCO World Heritage list. Warsaw has been an active member from the very start and was one of the founders. The OWHC World Congress is organized every two years. Jean Paul L’Allier is a Canadian politician, formerly president of the Founding Council of OWHC and the former mayor of Quebec City.

Kościuszko in the City Center
In the center of Warsaw, the monument to Tadeusz Kościuszko (1746-1817), the general of Poland and the United States and the hero of the two countries, will be built. The monument will be a replica of the obelisk erected in Washington in 1910. The general in an American uniform will be surrounded by the participants of the victorious battles, a prisoner of war and a scythe-bearing peasant recruit. Those who came up with the idea of the statue hope that Barack Obama himself will participate in the unveiling of the monument. The monument should be finished by April. Some of its elements have already been cast. The figure of the general is ready.

EU Money for Wilanów
PLN 24 million are to be given to the historic palace in Wilanów. The money will be spent on the redecoration of the apartments of King Jan III Sobieski, the founder of Wilanów and the winner of the battle of Vienna against the Turks in 1683. The EU funds will also be spent on restoring the royal gardens to their former beauty. Moreover, a virtual museum will be created. So far, the original color of the palace façade has been restored and the rooms of the king’s wife – queen Marysieńka, i.e. Maria Kazimiera d’Arguien have been renovated. The baroque palace in Wilanów, which is called the Polish Versailles, is the pride and tourist attraction of Warsaw. There are wonderful collections of furniture, china and silverware here, as well as paintings by many great Polish and foreign artists. The park that surrounds the palace delights with the beauty of nature and historic park pavilions. The inhabitants of Warsaw love to spend their free time in Wilanów, especially in summer. Yet, the place is beautiful in winter, too. The redecoration works are to be completed at the end of 2011.

CAPITOL Invites
This is a new theater and show event based on the songs from the performance entitled Climacteric… And That’s That (Klimakterium… i już). Have you already seen Climacteric And That’s That or are you planning to see it? Do you like singing? If so, we have a proposal for you: KARAOKE with Climacteric… And That’s That – a unique opportunity to sing together the hits from the performance. This will be great fun! Singing will make you feel better!
Malina, one of the heroines of the performance, celebrates her birthday. On this occasion, guests arrive at a second-hand shop. While waiting for Malina, they prepare the musical repertoire for the birthday party. The audience can actively participate in the party, they can sing solo, in a duet or in groups – they can feel like actors and stars of the evening. For more information visit www.teatrcapitol.pl